Fantasy Football: Playing the waiver wire (if you have to) in Week 18

Jake Browning, QB, Cincinnati Bengals

Browning threw for 197 yards, ran for 32 with two total touchdowns (one passing, one rushing) against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 17. He has topped 19.9 fantasy points in four of his last five games (16.4 points in the other; Yahoo! scoring), with a multiple touchdowns accounted for in the same four over that stretch.

Week 18 brings a very tough matchup against the Cleveland Browns, who are in the top-five in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks this season. That said, Cleveland has allowed multiple passing touchdowns in three of their last five games and they’ve occasionally allowed some noticeable production on the ground to a quarterback over the course of the season. The Browns are also locked into their playoff seed, so how much their starters will play is a question.

Browning has simply been getting it done in terms of fantasy production since stepping for the injured Joe Burrow, and he's been doing it fairly efficiently outside of a three-interception outing in Week 16. In Week 18, even in his toughest matchup yet and with his top two wide receivers operating at less than full strength, he’ll continue to be a viable option .

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